Argos Therapeutics

About Argos Therapeutics

Argos Therapeutics Inc. was a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company, founded in 1997, that focused on developing and commercializing personalized immunotherapies for cancer and infectious diseases. The firm's core scientific foundation was built upon the discovery of dendritic cells by its late scientific co-founder, Dr. Ralph M. Steinman, who was posthumously awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2011 for this work. This foundational research into the role of dendritic cells in the immune system directly led to the development of the company's proprietary technology platform.

The company's business model centered on the research, development, and eventual commercialization of these targeted therapies. Its primary clients were patients suffering from specific forms of cancer and infectious diseases, operating within the global biopharmaceutical market. Revenue generation was anticipated through the sale of its therapeutic products upon successful clinical trials and regulatory approval. The company secured significant funding over its lifespan, raising a total of $170 million over 15 rounds from various institutional investors, including Forbion, Pharmstandard International, and TVM Capital Life Science, to finance its extensive research and clinical trial operations.

Argos's key technology was the Arcelis® platform, designed to create fully personalized immunotherapies. This process involved using a small sample of a patient's own tumor or blood, along with their dendritic cells collected via a single procedure. Messenger RNA (mRNA) isolated from the patient's disease was used to program their dendritic cells, enabling them to prime a highly specific immune response against the unique antigens of that individual's disease. The company's lead product candidates were AGS-003 for metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) and AGS-004 for HIV. The ADAPT Phase 3 clinical trial for AGS-003, however, was recommended for discontinuation in early 2017 due to futility, as it was unlikely to meet its primary endpoint of improving overall survival. This event triggered significant financial distress, leading to the company filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2018. In February 2019, the company's assets were acquired by South Korean firms Genexine and SCM Lifescience for $11.1 million, and it was subsequently relaunched as CoImmune. Argos Therapeutics officially went out of business as its liquidation plan became effective on September 24, 2019.